Mortise-lock.



L. A. COLEMAN. MORTISB Loox,

APPLICATION FILED JULY 5, l1910.

Patented Dec. 6, 1910.

2 BHEBTBBHEET 1.

TIE l L. A. COLEMAN. MORTISE LOOK. AryLIoATIoN FILE JULY 5, .191o.

Patented Dec. 6,1910.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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LEWIS A. COLEMAN, OE NORFOLK, VIRGINIA, ASSIGNOR 0F ONE-THIRD TO ROBERT H.

GREGORY, OF NORFOLK, VIRGINIA.

MORTISE-LOOK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 6, 1910.

Application filed July 5, 1910. Serial No. 570,421.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Lnwls A. COLEMAN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Norfolk, in the county of Norfolk and State of Virginia, have invented new and useful Improvements in MortiseLocks, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to locks and particularly to that class of locks known as mortise locks.

It has for its object the provision of a combined latch and lock which will serve as a latch to hold a door under ordinary and usual conditions, and which, additionally, may be made to fulfil all the functions of a bolt lock.

The results aimed at are accomplished by combining a single-spring latch; a knob or handle for operating it, and a key controlled lock which may be thrown to an active or inactive position to hold the latch in locked or unlocked position.

The said lock is of such construction that it may be varied or permuted within wide limits without materially altering` the construction or pattern, and thus a large number of locks may be produced each of which is operable only by a particular and certain key.

In the drawings herewith I have shown one embodiment of my invention in order that the same may be clear to those skilled in the art, and in said drawings-Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view, showing a portion of the door and door jamb with the lock casing in place and the interior parts in locking position. Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view at right angles to Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a vertical section (enlarged) through the tumbler barrel. Fig. 4 is an enlarged view, partly in section, transversely of the tumbler barrel. Fig. 5 is a det-ail sectional view of the latch. Fig. 6 is a radial sectional view (enlarged) of the ring-tumbler blanks. Fig. 7 is a view at right'angles to Fig. 5 showing the tumblers on the tumbler barrel. Figs. 8, 9, 10 and 11 are diagrammatic sectional views to illustrate the operation of the lock.

Referring to the drawings by numerals like numbers indicating like parts in the several views, 2 indicates a portion of the door in which the lock is mounted, the lock being mortised in in the usual way. The door casing, or so much thereof as is necessary to illustrate my invention, is shown at 3, which casing carries the usual latch plate 4.

The lock proper comprises a casing 5 of any suitable shape and design, the present embodiment being rectangular and comprising a boxing provided with a cover plate 6 in which is mounted in suitable guide ways a latch 7 provided with a beveled nose and having its tail provided with a single spring 8 which normally tends to thrust the latch forward or projected from the casing, suitable limiting stops 9 being formed, on the latch to prevent its entire projection or accidental displacement from the casing.

The bolt 7 has rack 10 formed on opposite sides in reversed position andit has also bolt seats 11 in the same reverse relation on its opposite sides in order that the said latch may be used for oppositely swung doors by simply reversing it or turning it over so as to bring the beveled nose of the latch on one side or the other as may be desired.

The rack 10 which is active, and in the present case is on the upper side or the top of the latch, is engaged by a segmental gear 12 on spindle 13 of a suitable knob 14 so that as the knob 14 is turned the latch 7 may be retracted against the tension of spring 8 and the door operated in the usual manner, the spring 8 returning the latch and knob to their normal positions immediately the knob is released.

In order that the latch 7 may be converted into a bolt and the door locked against opening except by the holder of a key I provide a locking bolt 15 which is mounted in suitable guide ways in the lock casing 5 and the forward end of which engages the bolt seat 11 in the latch 7. The lock bolt 15 is provided on one face with a rack 16 by which the said bolt 15 is manipulated through instrumentalities presently to be described, and preferably this locking bolt 15 will be frictionally held in its guide ways or seat so that it will remain in whatever position of rest it may be left in, whether it be in engagement with the bolt seat 11 and holding the latch 7 locked in place, or whether it be withdrawn from the bolt seat leaving the latch free to be manipulated.

In order that the locking bolt 15 may be conveniently operated by any person holding a suitable key, and in order that it may be held against manipulation by unauthorized persons, and, furthermore, that the lock may be capable of adaptation to a plurality of keys without the necessity of changing the lock structure or the pattern, I provide the novel form of bolt operating mechanism which I shall now describe. This bolt operating mechanism Vcomprises; a barrel 17 rotatably mounted in suitable seats in the casing 5, this barrel being normally held in any position of rest to which it may be brought by means of a spring washer or disk 18, so that whatever the angular position of this barrel 17 the spring will retain it against accidental displacement, although leaving it free to turn under the manipulation of a suitable key. The said barrel 17 is kerfed to provide a key-slot 19, the keyslot 19 opening at the keyplate 2O on the outside of the door so that an operating key may be readily inserted and withdrawn from the barrel through the key plate and key slot. The said barrel 17 carries a plurality of gear-toothed tumblers 21, five being shown in the present instance, although it is obvious the number may be increased or diminished as desired. The said tumblers 21 are provided with elliptical shaped openings so that they will have a slight movement transversely of the barrel 17 and each tumbler is provided with an inwardly projecting radially disposed tongue 22 which engages the key-slot 19 in the barrel as shown. 'Ihe -said tongues 22 are or may be initially of the same length, and it is obvious that these ring tumblers may be radially blanked out of sheet metal so that they can be cheaply made in large quantities.

The ring tumblers are shown in their initial form in Fig. 6 with the radial tongues 22 extending downwardly into the bore of the tumbler, and in Fig. 7 a tumbler is shown mounted on the tumbler barrel.

In Figs. 8 to 11, inclusive, the tumblers are shown assembled in operative position in proper relation to the bolt 15, these views being more or less diagrammatic for clearness. In the lock shown in Fig. 8 it will be observed that tumbler No. 2 o-f the series of five is to be the operative tumbler, and I provide the key 23 for this particular lock with a projection 24, so placed as to engage the tongue of the tumbler 2 and elevate that particular tumbler into geared engagement with the bar 15. It is obvious that the other tumbler tongues 22 may be cut off as shown or the tumbler 1 may be cut off and the tumblers 3, 4 and 5 may be left in their initial lengths if desired for the key 23 can enter only far enough for its projection 24 to engage tumbler No. 2 and cannot engage any of the other tumblers Nos. 3, 4 and 5. In the lock shown in Fig. 9, No. 4 tumbler is to be the operative tumbler and the key there shown is provided with a projection which will engage the depending tongue 22 of No. 4 tumbler, the other tumblers being cut away so that they are not engaged by the key which is designed toractuate No. 4 tumbler. In Fig. 10, which is a reproduction of the tumbler arrangement shownin Fig. 8, it will be seen that No. 2 tumbler cannot be actuated by the key used in the variation of lock shown in Fig. 9 to actuate No; 4 tumbler, and in the variation of the lock shown in Fig. 11, and which is identical with that shown in Fig. 9, it will be obvio-us that the key designed to operate No. 2 tum` bler cannot operate No. 4 tumbler so that the `various keys fitted to handle certain tumblers are not interchangeable for the key 23 is inserted with a straight thrust into the key seat in the barrel. It cannot be turned until it is completely thrust home and the notch 25 therein engages the key plate 20, and when so thrust home and brought to rotative position a particular key can handle only the tumbler' for which it was designed.

In order to prevent the thrusting in of a straight beveled bar into the key seat to elevate tumblers the lower open part of the key seat may be given any angular form such as is shown in dotted lines in Fig. 7 at 2G, and the keys may, of course, be given the like angular shape in cross section, this being common in the manufacture of keys for barrel locks.

It will be clear that the number of variations which may be made in a lock of this type are very large for even slight changes in tumbler tongue lengths and in key de- Y signs throughout the series of tive tumblers shown will make a lock which can be manipulated only by a particular key, and an increase in the number of tumblers will, of course, increase the number of changes which may be rung in making up the locks. Furthermore, the simplicity of structure is such that the locks may be blanked out according to a single pattern in the factory if desired, and this stock lock sold to the key makers, who can then by selecting and cutting the tumbler tongues and tting the keys quickly and easily produce a Ylock which can only be opened by the key designed for it, and it is equally obvious that. by merely shifting tumblers and making a new key an old lock may be readily altered if desired.

IVhile I have shown this lock as applied to a bevel nose latch, I do not wish to be understood as limiting it to that particular type of door fastening, for the term latch as used in the specification and claims is used to designate any sliding fastener whether it be specifically a latch or a bolt, spring projected or otherwise. l

The particular embodiment of my invention here shown is the bestknown to me, but as it is merely illustrative and is capable of many changes within the range of mechanical skill, I do not limit myselt'to the particular construction shown and described,

except so far as I am limited by the terms of the appended claims.

I'Vhat I claim is:

1. In a lock, the combination with a latch, of latch operating means, a locking-bolt for said latch, and a selective series of key-operated bolt-engaging and actuating tumblers.

2. In a lock, the combination with a latch, of latch-operating means, a locking-bolt for said latch, a normally-disengaged bolt-operating tumbler capable of operative engagement with said bolt, and means to rotate said tumbler and throw said bolt.

3. In a lock, the combination with a latch, of latch-operating means, a locking-bolt for said latch, a normally disengaged geared tumbler for actuating said bolt, and key controlled means to intergear said bolt and tumbler and throw said bolt.

t. In a lock, the combination with a latch, of latch-operating means, a rack-faced locking-bolt for said latch, a geared tumbler shiftable to and from engagement with said bolt, and means for rotating said tumbler and throwing said bolt.

5. In a lock, the combination with a latch, of latch-operating means, a locking-bolt for said latch, a rotatable tumbler-barrel, and a tumbler rotatable withsaid barrel, and shiftable to and from bolt-engaging position.

6. In a lock, the combination with a latch, of latch-operating means, a rack-faced locking-bolt for said latch, a rotatable tumblerbarrel, a geared tumbler mounted on said barrel and rotatable therewith, said tumbler beingshiftable transversely of said barrel into geared engagement with said bolt.

7. In a lock, the combination with a latch, of latch-operating means, a locking-bolt for said latch, a rotatable tumbler-barrel having a key-seat therein, and a bolt-actuating tumbler rotatable with and laterally shiftable on said barrel by movement of a key in the keyseat.

S. In arlock, the combination with a latch, of latch-operating means, a locking-bolt for said latch, a tumbler-barrel having` a keyseat, a transversely-shiftable tumbler on said barrel having a. tongue extending into the key-seat, whereby upon insertion of a key the tumbler will be transversely shifted into engagement with said bolt.

9. In a lock, the combination with a latch, of latch-operating means, a rack-faced locking -bolt for said latch, a tumbler barrel rotatably mounted and having a key-seat therein, and a geared tumbler movably mounted on said barrel and having a tongue extending into said key-seat, whereby upon insertion of a key, the tumbler will be h'own into geared engagement with said 10. In a lock, the combination with a latch, of latch-operating means, a rack-faced locking-bolt for said latch, a tumbler-barrel rotatably mounted and having a key-seat therein, and a geared tumbler transversely shiftable on said barrel and having a keyengageable tongue extending into said keyseat, whereby upon insertion of a key the tumbler will be moved across the barrel into geared engagement with said bolt.

11. In a lock, the combination with a latch, of latch-operating means, a lockingbolt for said latch, a tumbler-barrel having a key-seat, a shiftable ring-tumbler encircling said barrel and having a radially-disposed tongue entering said key-seat, and gear teeth on the outer periphery of `said tumbler to engage said locking bolt.

12. In a lock, the combination with a latch, of latch-operating means, a lockingbolt for said latch, a tumbler-barrel, a selective series of ring-tumblers rotatably connected wit-h said barrel, and means for selecting and shifting a predetermined one of said tumblers to bring it into operative engagement with said bolt.

13. In a lock, the combination with a latch, of latch-operating means, a lockingbolt for said latch, a tumbler-barrel, and a selective series of ring tmnblers mounted on said barrel and provided with key-seat engaging-tongues engaging said key-seat and serving as tumbler-selecting and shifting means, whereby a predetermined tumbler of the series may be selected and shifted into engagement with said locking bolt.

14. In a lock, the combination with a latch, of latch-operating means, a lockingbolt for said latch, a tumbler-barrel, and a series of bolt-engaging ring-tumblers mounted on said barrel, the internal bore of said tumblers being greater than the diameter of said barrel to permit lateral shitting of the tumblers on the barrel.

15. In a lock, the combination with a latch, of latch-operating` means, a lockingbolt for said latch, a tumbler-barrel, and a series of bolt-engaging ring-tumblers mounted on said barrel, said tumblers having elliptical bores to permit lateral shifting of the tumblers on the barrel.

16. In a lock, the combination with a latch, of latch-operating means, a lockingbolt :tor said latch, bolt-operating means comprising a rotatable tumbler-barrel having a selective series of shiftable ring-tumblers thereon, and means for maintaining said barrel and tumblers aga-inst accidental rotation.

17. In a lock, the combination with a latch, of means for operating said latch, a my hand in presence offtwo subsebing Witloeking -bolt for said latch, bolt-operating nesses. means comprising a tumbler-barrel having a series of shiftable ring-tninblers thereon, and 5 a spring disk for holdin@ said barrel and Witnesses:

tumblers against aceidentzil rotation. ARTHUR L. BRYANT,

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set A. V. CUSHMAN.

LEWIS A.' COLEMAN. 

